Stephen Chow Films King of Comedy 2, Eying 2019 Chinese New Year Release

Hong Kong media reports that Stephen Chow currently is filming King of Comedy 2 in mainland China. According to sources familiar with the matter, Stephen Chow’s The Mermaid 2 was previously set to release during 2019 Chinese New Year. However, as the post production of the film is taking much longer than expected, the director decided to make King of Comedy 2 for the Chinese new year season. King of Comedy 2 is a sequel to Stephen Chow’s 1999 comedy film King of Comedy. The sequel stars Wang Baoqiang, who also played major roles in this year’s box office hits Detective Chinatown 2 and The Island. Read more on Mtime

Bona Film Group May Return To A-share Market Thanks to ‘Project Gutenberg’

In 2010, China’s Bona Film Group went public on Nasdaq, becoming the first Chinese film company listed in the US. However, in 2016, the company exited Nasdaq and submitted new prospectus to Shenzhen Stock Exchange in order to return to the A-share market in China. According to Bona CEO Yu Dong, the company’s value was underestimated in the US stock market, which was the main reason why they decided to return to China. As the Chinese government has been tightening control over the entertainment sector, Bona’s China IPO journey is not smooth sailing. Luckily, two of this year’s box office hits are produced by Bona. One is the Chinese New Year box office winner Operation Red Sea; The other is the recent hit Project Gutenberg. The unexpected success of Project Gutenberg makes industry experts predict that Bona is getting much closer to its China IPO. Read more on entgroup.cn

Tsui Hark Seeks Actors for His Upcoming ‘Return of The Condor Heroes Trilogy’

A casting call for Tsui Hark’s upcoming wuxia series Return of The Condor Heroes Trilogy has just been posted, indicating the launch of the project. According to the casting call, the trilogy will be shot between June 2019 and February 2020. The casting call also indicates that the director plans to cast emerging actors to play the classic characters Yang Guo and Xiaolongnv. Tsui Hark once revealed that Return of The Condor Heroes was the first wuxia novel he ever read and the book had a big impact on him. Read more on Mtime

China Film Insider reports on and writes about the people and companies making movies that soon may help to bridge the gaps in understanding between China, the United States, and the rest of the world. We work in Beijing, Los Angeles, and New York.